CSR reporting: Honest employers disclose their EcoVadis Premium Report at least to their own employees.

Unfair Advantage

EcoVadis should publish which companies disclose their Premium Reports to their employees and which companies refuse to do so.

Honest companies tell the truth to EcoVadis. There will be no significant conflict between what an organization reports to EcoVadis and what the employees know about their organization.

If, however, an organization has a policy to hide CSR reports from the employees, they can spruce up their self assessment quite a bit. EcoVadis doesn’t have the background knowledge and the resources to check reports as thoroughly as the employees. Therefore it is easier for dishonest companies to get an EcoVadis “Gold” award than for honest companies.

Thus, by not encouraging organizations with a “Silver” or “Gold” rated CSR management to disclose the detailed Ecovadis Premium Report, EcoVadis gives organizations with intransparent CSR reporting an unfair advantage.

But then again, things perhaps are not that bad: Honest companies can disclose their detailed EcoVadis CSR report without any encouragement by EcoVadis. That is how smart companies turn a disadvantage into an advantage.